Transportation-car and the like.



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APPLICATION FILED MAY 1,1905.

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No. 806,763. PATENTED DEC. 12, 1905. J. MoB. AMES.

TRANSPORTATION CAR AND THE LIKE.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 1,1905.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

PATENTED DEC. 12, 1905.

J. MOE. AMES; TRANSPORTATION CAR AND THE LIKE;

APPLICATION FILED MAY 1,1905.

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avwantoz Wilmeooo UNITED STATES PATENT OFFIOE.

JOHN MoE. AMES, OF NEW BRIGHTON, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO BEN- JAMIN A. HEGEMAN, JR, OF NORTH PLAINFIELD, NEW JERSEY.

TRANSPORTATION-CAR AND THE LIKE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

- Patented Dec. 12, 1905.

Application filed May 1' 1905. Serial No. 258,213.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, JOHN MoE. AMEs, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of New Brighton, in the county of Richmond and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Transportation-Cars and the'Like, of which the following is a specification.

The invention relates to improvements in transportation-cars and the like, and pertains more particularly to novel mechanism for opening, closing, and locking the discharge door or doors located at the bottom of the car compartment or compartments.

The invention will be fully understood from the detailed description hereinafter presented, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a longitudinal section through a portion of a hopper-car on the dotted line 1 1 of Fig. 4 and illustrates the door-operating mechanism as securing a hopper-car door in closed position, the dotted lines denoting the position of the door when in its open position. Fig. 2 is an enlarged top view of a crank-frame constituting a portion of the door-operating mechanism. Fig. 3 is a side elevation of same. Fig. 4 is a top view of a portion of the center or draft sills of a hopper-car with door-operating mechanism embodying my invention supported thereby, the Z-bar at the lower edge of the door being the only part of the latter illustrated. Fig. 5 is a vertical transverse section through a portion of a usual car having applied thereto door-operating mechanism embodying my invention. Fig. 6 is a side elevation of a portion of the car and illustrates the means located at the outer side of same for locking the door-operating shaft. 7 is a view corresponding with Fig. 1, but illustrating a modification of the invention in respect of the crank-frame and door-connecting rod. Fig. 8 is a top view of the crank-frame represented in Fig. 7, and Fig. 9 is a side elevation of same.

In the drawings, 10 designates a portion of the side of a hopper-car of usual construction 1 1, the draft or center sills of same; 12, a usual type of hinged discharge door or gate at the lower end of the customary inclined floor-section 14, (denoted by dotted lines in Fig. 1,) and 15 a transverse operating-shaft from which through intermediate mechanism the door or gate may be operated. The shaft 15 extends transversely of the car below the inclined floor-section 14 and is ournaled at its inner end in a hanger-bearing 16, secured to one of the center sills 11, while at its outer end said shaft is mounted in a plate 17, at the outer side of which the said shaft has a polygonal end carrying a locking-plate 18 and adapted beyond said plate to receive a wrench or other suitable tool for rotating said shaft to effect the opening and closing of the door. The locking-plate 18 is of known form and construction and cooperates with pivoted dogs 19 for looking at its outer end the shaft 15. The novel features of the pres ent invention are thus located at the inner portion of the shaft 15 or between thecenter sills 11, and these features comprise the crank-frame 20 and cooperating parts. The

crank-frame 20 of the form presented in,

Figs. 1 to 5, inclusive, is illustrated in detail in Figs. 2 and 3, from which will be seen that the said frame is in the form of a casting and comprises the connected crankarms 21 22, laterally-projecting hub 23, and laterally-projecting shaft 24, the said arms 21 22 in the construction shown in Figs. 2 and 3 being connected by the depressed section or saddle 25. The hub 23 projectsin one direction from the lower end of the arm 22, and the shaft 24 projects in the opposite direction from the lower end of the arm 21, and the said hub 23 is formed with a polygonal recess or socket 26 to receive the inner end of the operating-shaft 15, which is likewise polygonal in cross-section, Fig. 1, so that the crank-frame 20 may become rigid therewith or keyed thereto. The portion of the operating-shaft 15 which is within the hanger-bearing 16 is circular in cross-section, and beyond the hanger-bearing 16 the end of the shaft 15 conforms to the walls of the recess or socket 26. Theshaft 24 of the crankframe 20 is journaled at its outer end in a hanger-bearing 27, secured to one of the draft-sills and corresponding and being in line with the bearing 16, secured tothe other draft-sill, and thusthe crank-frame 20 becomes mounted between the draft-sills 11, being supported at one side upon theinner end of the operating-shaft 15 and at its other side by the integral shaft 24, mounted in the bearing 27. Between the outerends of the crank-arms 21 22, formed by the frame 20,

is secured upon a pivot-pin 28 the upper end .of a connecting-rod 29, whose lower end is secured bya pin 30 to the door or gate 12, this rod 29 in the construction shown in Figs. 1 to 5, inclusive, being a plain straight rod. When the door or gate 12 is in its closed position, the crank-arms 21 22 and rod 29 are in the alined relation illustrated in Fig. 1, with the center line through the crank-pin 28, lower pivot-point 30, and rod 29 below the center of the shaft 15, this relation of the parts serving to lock the door or gate 12 in its closed position and being permitted by the fact that the upper portion of the rod 29 may pass down in between the crank-arms 21 22 to the saddle 25, which is below the lower edges of the crank-arms properand connects the latter, leaving abundant space for the reception of the upper portion of the rod 29 and permitting the latter to descend sufficiently between the crank-arms to carry the center of the crank-pin 28 below a center line through the lower pivot-pin 30 and shaft 15. I desire to claim the crank-frame without regard to whether the connecting-rod 29 is 1 straight or bent; but an advantage of the construction shown in Figs. 1 to 5, inclusive, is that the said rod may be straight, as shown, and at the same time during the closing of the door carry the crank-pin at its upper end below the aforesaid center line through the lower pivot 30 and shaft 15 for locking the gate in its closed position.

In Figs. 7, 8, and 9 I illustrate a modified form of crank-frame and connecting-rod, the

said features being numbered 31 32, respectively, and this form of crank-frame 31 comprising crank-arms 33 34, recessed hub 35, integral shaft 36, and connecting-hub 37, be tween the inner ends of said crank-arms and in line with said hub 35 and shaft 36. The only difference between the crank-frame 31 of Fig. 8 and the corresponding crank-frame 20 of Fig. 2 resides in the fact that in Fig. 8 the saddle 25 of Fig. 2 has been omitted and that in lieu thereof I connect the crank-arms by means of the integral hub 37. The presence of the hub 37 in the crank-frame 31 necessitates the formation of an offset or bend 38 in the rod 32, so that upon the closing of the door or gate 12 the crank-pin 39 at the upper end of said rod may pass downwardly to a sufficient extent to carry its center below a center line through the lower pivot 40 and operating-shaft 15, this being for the purpose of locking the door 12 in its closed position. The crank-frame 31 of Fig. 8 is supported upon the operating-shaft 15 and between the draft-sills in the manner clearly represented in Fig. 5. The construction of crank-frarne 20 shown in Fig. 2 permits of the use of a straight connecting-rod 29, while with the construction of crank-frame 31 shown in Fig. 8 a bend 38 or equivalent construction is required in the rod 32, so that the upper portion of the latter may pass partly around the obstructing hubsection 37.

I/Vhen it is desired to open the door or gate 12, the locking-dogs 19 will be released from the plate 18 and the attendant will turn the shaft 15 upwardly and toward the left, looking at Figs. 1 and 6, to'lift the upper end of the crank-frame and upper end of the doorconnecting rod above the aforesaid center line through the shaft 15 and lower pivotpoint of said rod, thereby releasing the door mechanism and permitting the pressure against the door or gate 12 to drive the latter open, whence the door may be pushed to its most open position by the direct leverage of the crank-frame and rod. When it is desired to close the door or gate 12, the attendant through said shaft and lower pivot, when,

due to the relation of the crank-arms, operating-shaft, and connecting-rod, the door will be held in its closed position. The door or gate 12 may be further locked in closed position by the engagement of the dogs 19 with the plate 18, as usual, or by any other suitable means.

I direct attention to the fact that the door 12 extends downwardly both when open and closed and is hinged at and hangs from its upper edge and that the rod 29 and crankframe 20 extend downwardly 011 an inclined line substantially along the line of the inclined floorsection 14, the rod 29 forming a direct connection from the crank-frame to the lower edge of the door. The transverse shaft 15 is located directly below the longitudinal car-sills and below the inclined floorsection 14, in which position it is conveniently removed some distance from the door 12, but through the crank-frame 20 and rod 29 has a direct connection vwith the lower edge of the hanging door, whereby a very simple and highly efiicient door-operating mechanism is produced.

In the construction presented. in this application the crank-frame 20 is an integral frame and substantially spans the space between the center sills 11 and the shaft 15, extends to and engages said frame, but does not cross said space. In my copending application, Serial No. 258,212, filed May 1, 1.905, I present a construction in which the operating-shaft extends across the space between the center sills and is offset in line with said space and has crank-arms applied upon it at opposite sides of its offset portion.

What I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. In a car having an inclined floor-section at the lower end thereof, the door mechanism comprising the crank-frame affording connected crank-arms, hub and shaft mounted between the draft-sills, a bearing for said shaft, the transverse operating-shaft extending below said floor-section and connected with said hub, and the connecting-rod pivotally mounted at its upper end between said crank-arms and at its lower end pivotally connected with the lower edge of the door, said crank-frame and rod when the door is closed standing substantially in line with each other and withsaid floor-section; substantially as set forth.

2. In a car having an inclined floor-section and a downwardly-hanging discharge-door at the lower end thereo the door mechanism. comprising the crank-frame affording connected crank-arms, hub and shaft mounted between the draft-sills, a bearing for said shaft, the transverse operating-shaft extending below said floor-section and connected with said hub, and the connecting-rod pivotally mounted at its upper end between said crank-arms and at its lower end pivotally connected with the lower edge of the door,

said crank-frame and rod when the door is closed standing substantially in line with each other and with said floor-section, and said parts being arranged to permit the crank-pin to pass beyond the center line of the shaft and lower pivot-point .of said rod when the door is closed, for locking the door closed; substantially as set forth.

3. In a car having an inclined floor-section and a downwardly-hanging discharge-door at the lower end thereof, the door mechanism comprising the crank-frame mounted between the draft-sills and aflording the crankarms and section connecting said arms beyond the pivotal center of said frame, the transverse operating-shaft extending below said floor-section and connected with said frame, and the connectingrod pivotally mounted at its upper end between said crankarms and at its lower end pivotally connected with the lower edge of the door, said crankframe and rod when the door is closed standing substantially in line with each other and with said floor-section; substantially as set forth.

4. In a car having an inclined floor-section and a downwardly-hanging discharge-door at the lower end thereof, the door mechanism comprising the crank-frame mounted between the draft-sills and afiording the crankarms, section connecting said arms beyond the pivotal center of the frame, hub and shaft, a'bearing forsaid shaft, the transverse operating-shaft extending below said floorsection and connected with said hub, and the connecting-rod pivotally mounted at its upper end between said crank-arms and at its lower end pivotally connected with the lower edge of the door, said crank-frame and rod when the door is closed standing substantially in line with each other and with said floorsection substantially as set forth.

5. In a car having an inclined floor-section and a downwardly-hanging discharge-door at the lower end thereof, the door mechanism comprising the integral crank-frame mounted between the draft-sills and affording the connected crank-arms, the transverse operating-shaft extending below said floorsection and connected with said frame, and the connecting-rod pivotally mounted at its upper end between said crank-arms and at its lower end pivotally connected with the lower edge of the door, said crank-frame and rod when the door is closed standing substantially in line with each other and with said floor-section; substantially as set forth.

6. In a car having an inclined floor-section and a downwardly-hanging discharge-door at the lower end thereof, the door mechanism comprising the transverse operatingshaft extending below said floor-section and having a bearing at the side of the car and in a hanger connected with one of the draft-sills and possessing a polygonal inner end, and the crank-frame between said sills affording the connected crank-arms, hub and shaft, said hub being recessed to receive the inner polygonal end of said operating-shaft, and the shaft of said crank-frame being mounted in a hanger-bearing connected with the other one of said sills, combined with the connecting-rod pivotally mounted at its upper end between said crank-arms and at its lower end pivotally connectedwith the lower edge of the door, said crank-frame and rod when the door is closed standing substantially in line with each other and with said floor-section; substantially as set forth.

Signed at New York city, in the county and State of New York, this 28th day of April, A. D; 1905.

JOHN MoE. AMES. Witnesses:

B. A. HEGEMAN, Jr., CHARLES C. GILL. 

